Ruling Thursday reinstates 25 NASCAR Cup points and moves Hendrick Motorsports driver from 10th to seventh in the standings.
William Byron has new life in the NASCAR Cup Playoffs after the National Motorsports Appeals Panel on Thursday overturned at least part of his penalty for actions during the NASCAR Cup Series race at Texas Motor Speedway.
William Byron is back on the good side of the cut line in the NASCAR Playoffs.
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On Sept. 27, Byron was fined $50,000 and hit with a loss of 50 driver and owner points for intentionally ramming Denny Hamlin in what was determined to be a breach of conduct.
NASCAR bylaws state that member actions, including “intentionally wrecking another vehicle,” can result in a loss of 25-50 driver and team owner points and/or $50,0000-$100,000 fine and/or suspension.
The appeals board raised original fine to $100,000 but eliminated the points part of the penalty equation. With the 25 points added back to Byron’s ledger, the Hendrick Motorsports driver goes from 10th to seventh in NASCAR Cup Playoff standings, 14 points clear of the cutline.
The playoff field will be trimmed from 12 to eight following Sunday’s race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway Roval.
Here’s the text of Thursday’s ruling:
The National Motorsports Appeals Panel today heard and considered an appeal of a Behavioral penalty issued on Sept. 27, 2022 to driver William Byron and team owner Rick Hendrick in the NASCAR Cup Series.
The penalty concerns the following section in the 2022 NASCAR Rule Book: Section 4.3 NASCAR Member Conduct and 4.4 NASCAR Member Code of Conduct Penalty Options and Guidelines. The penalties issued were a $50,000 fine to Byron and the loss of 25 championship driver and owner points.
Upon hearing the testimony, the decisions of the National Motorsports Appeals Panel are:
1. That the Appellants violated the Rule(s) set forth in the Penalty Notice.
2. That the Panel amends the original penalty assessed by NASCAR to read: $100,000 fine for William Byron and no loss of NASCAR Cup Series Championship Team Owner or Driver points.
The Appeals Panel members for this hearing:
- Mr. Hunter Nickell
- Mr. Dale Pinilis
- Mr. Kevin Whitaker
The Appellants have the right to appeal the decision of the National Motorsports Appeals Panel to the National Motorsports Final Appeals Officer in accordance with the NASCAR Rule Book.
Updated NASCAR Points Standings
(Playoff field will be cut to eight after Sunday’s race at Charlotte)
- *Chase Elliott 3,103
- Ryan Blaney 3,101
- Ross Chastain 3,097
- Denny Hamlin 3,090
- Joey Logano 3,087
- Kyle Larson 3,087
- William Byron 3083
- Daniel Suarez 3,081
- Chase Briscoe 3,069
- Austin Cindric 3,069
- Christopher Bell 3,036
- Alex Bowman 3,015
Mike Pryson Mike Pryson covered auto racing for the Jackson (Mich.) Citizen Patriot and MLive Media Group from 1991 until joining Autoweek in 2011.
Keyword: The Ruling: William Byron Gets Needed Points Break from National Motorsports Appeals Panel